We Investigated Fominex: Legit or Scam? The Facts

Recently, Fominex.com service popped up, promoting itself as a place where you can safely store cryptocurrency and other assets. I managed to gather reliable supporting information that clearly confirms it is, in fact, a fraudulent site.

Regardless of the promises of the most user-friendly, dependable, and customer-centric service, Fominex.com does not follow any of them. In fact, all this is just a shiny wrap around a blatant scam, which steals your funds and never returns them. Any tales about bonuses, backing from celebrities etc are nowhere to be found as well.

It is better to prevent, than repair and repent!

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Fominex Scam Overview

Originally, Fominex poses as a crypto trading & cryptowallet service with exceptionally low commission fees. Another highlighted marketing point for this service is partnerships with celebrities that are known as crypto activists. Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Vitalii Buterin, Warren Buffet – the site says about being supported by them. To make these claims look more realistic, con actors employ deepfake videos where those celebrities advertise the scam as if it was the best thing in the world. Obviously, Elon Musk is the most common among them. But, as I mentioned above, all this is just a blatant wrap around an obvious scam.

Fominex Scam

To begin with, Fominex repeats the layout of multiple equivalent websites. There are quite a few examples, like Marsebit, Melorix or Sucoinx. They are totally undistinguishable in terms of graphic elements, with slight discrepancies in the website header. Other particulars, and sometimes even crypto wallet addresses, are the same. Presumably, all these scam online platforms are operated by a single gang of fraudsters.

Cryptocurrency Scam Summary

How the Fominex Scam Works?

Fominex is a part of a significant cryptocurrency scam scheme that started circulating actively in 2023. Rascals who stand behind it use several website designs, which still share the similar overall layout. Another mutual element are the ways the scams like NAME are promoted, and the manner all this ends up to the victim of the scam. To reach peak efficiency, frauds apply advanced psychological tricks that make the user believe in the validity of the website. But let’s review them one by one.

Step 1: Promotion

To begin the deceptive scheme, criminals set up and fill accounts on popular social media platforms. They mainly aim at Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Subsequently, the marketing campaign begins. Utilizing bots and sponsored advertisements (when achievable), fraud actors boost the exposure of their scam activities to potential victims. And as I said, scammers do not shy away using deepfake for creating clips with the aforementioned celebrities that advertise their scam to the public. To boost the folks even more, frauds claim the bonus for every user who registers the service immediately.

Promotions of cryptoscams like Fominex in TikTok. Most of these videos are AI-generated deepfakes

Users receive an incentive to register, drawn by the assurance of obtaining crypto prizes valued at hundreds of dollars, all for free. To augment the appeal of the offer, fake claims of sponsorship by a celebrity are added. As you may guess, these assertions are entirely baseless.

Step 2: Gaining Traffic

After following the promos, targets end up on a page filled with enticing offers. “Crypto starts with Fominex”, “Your crypto savings are secured with Fominex, “Start earning with Fominex – they look rather credible. To heat up the interest and make the users proceed to step 3, fraudsters say that obtaining the promoted bonus requires registration. And as nothing suspicious happens at this point, uninformed users happily move on – especially since the bonus appears to be right behind the corner.

At this point, it is possible to skip the scam without any losses. Before you sign up using your personal information, rascals will not be able to earn even a nickel from your presence on the website.

Step 3: Data Gathering

This is where the main fraud action begins. As I just said, deceivers bait folks for registration with bonuses. And all the personal data needed for it – email, username, crypto wallet address – is valuable for user identification. Exclusively by gathering this information and selling it further into the Darknet, crooks can earn quite a penny. Still, their plans go much further.

As it turns out, you cannot use the promised bonus right away. To make it at least usable for crypto purchases, the user should top up the account with the equivalent sum. And this is what initiates the final step of the scam.

Step 4: Requesting funds

Eventually, any crypto operations require you to have money on your account. In the case of Fominex, users are also coerced to top up to use the bonuses. And these top ups is what creates most of the money flow to this fraudulent site. By topping up the account, users hope to get the promised gift (usually $500-1000 in USDT), and may start trading on this website hoping to use all the credited funds and withdraw them.

This is where the issues start to surface. When comparing the actual crypto wallet vs what the site says, you can notice that no transactions are done whatsoever. And then, when you’d try to pull out the money from your account, the scam is finally uncovered to the user.

Step 5: Escaping from Funds Withdrawal

Needless to say that fraudsters are naught on intentions to give your money back. Though to make the fraud look more legitimate, they’ve made up a whole pack of reasons to decline the withdrawal request. Usually, they repeat what KYC regulations say, but for the Fominex.com they are here only to make the wireout impossible.

By requesting your personal info, frauds just stall hoping for you to accept the loss and stop contacting them. If you don’t – well, there are numerous other checks you should go through before getting your money back. And each of these checks will share more and more information, which – you guessed it right – will be then sold on the Darknet. Never reveal your real info to strangers!

Signs of Scam

I gathered several facts that point at the scammy nature of the Fominex.com. Actually, there are a lot of scams that fall under the same points, so they are pretty much universal.

• Unsubstantiated Credibility. Fominex employs fraudulent celebrity endorsements, often featuring names like Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Mr. Beast, and Mark Zuckerberg. These false claims extend to fictitious partnerships with reputable entities like Coinbase, Binance, or MetaMask, despite the absence of genuine connections.
• Implausible Earnings Claims. Promising remarkable returns of 50-100-200%, Fominex exploits the longing for quick profits. However, such gains are unrealistic within the volatile cryptocurrency landscape, unequivocally identifying Fominex as a scam.
• Dubious Corporate Information. Fominex arouses suspicion by providing inadequate documentation about ownership, location, and registration. Furthermore, the lack of legitimate contact information and the recent registration of domain and social media profiles deepen skepticism.
• Exclusive Cryptocurrency Payments. Fominex.com solely accepts payments in cryptocurrencies, refraining from traditional bank transfers and other payment methods. This approach not only shrouds the company’s identity but also prevents the possibility of requesting refunds.
• Potential Pyramid Scheme. The scam relies on a Ponzi-like referral structure disseminated through social media. Nevertheless, only initial participants profit, often at the expense of funds brought in by subsequent members.
• Groundless Hype Tactics. Fominex utilizes fabricated claims about non-existent events, such as securing contracts with Coinbase or receiving endorsements from Elon Musk. This manipulative strategy aims to foster belief in money returns and encourages individuals to top up their accounts again.

What Should I do as a Victim?

If you had to deal with Fominex site and fell victim to that scam, there are still some steps to take. They will make further scam attempts harder, and also boost the knowledge about that scam among folks.

• Report to Authorities. Your initial action should involve reporting the scam to local authorities responsible for addressing financial fraud. Additionally, reach out to wallet providers and engage with the technical support teams of social networks. This collective effort raises the bar for the scammers’ operations.
• Inform Your Inner Circle. Extend your impact by sharing information about the scam with your close friends. Similar to notifying authorities, this dissemination of details curbs the scammers’ potential to deceive.
• Document the Trail. Assemble a comprehensive record by capturing screenshots and archiving all relevant website-related data. This encompasses the website URL, screenshots of the main page, login interface, end-user license agreement (EULA), account top-up menu, and wallet addresses. These materials offer invaluable leads for authorities in their pursuit of the scammers.
• Explore Refund Possibilities. While cryptocurrency payments may not typically align with traditional bank refund policies, it’s worthwhile to explore potential refund avenues under specific circumstances. Maintain a positive outlook until you secure confirmation of the loss.
• Transform Loss into Insight. Shift your focus from the financial loss to gaining wisdom. Consider your loss as an investment in comprehending the tactics employed by crypto scam sites. Familiarize yourself with their distinctive traits, the methods they employ to entice individuals, and the extravagant pledges they make. This knowledge equips you to recognize and avoid future traps, minimizing the risk of enduring further financial setbacks.

Scan your system for possible malware infections

Beware of cross scams! Scam actors can use your trust to make you download some stuff or interact with certain documents. It may be a trap that installs malware to your system. There are no moral barriers or limits for these scoundrels.

Throughout the duration of the scam, its actors may reach out to you with particular files. Alternatively, they may offer you to deploy “cryptocurrency wallet applications” or “browser extensions” to facilitate access to your cryptocurrency assets. As we earlier determined, these deceivers have no intention of restoring your money. So, what do these messages and browser extensions represent? Correct – this is another component of the fraudulent scheme designed to throw you into deliberately installing destructive programs onto your computer.

Both plugins and attachments attached to email messages can function as a shell for diverse malicious software. In this situation, I foresee the presence of spyware and stealers among all kinds of malicious programs. While it is not mandatory for scammers to distribute malware, the probability is always significant. As stated, their morality is of no concern, and their reputation is already neck deep in mud. They have no scruples to lose and intend to boost profits.

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